Devastatingly Nothing
by Inamioly
Summary: Tiva, of course! Ziva is back,and it is up to Gibbs to get Tony to admit his feelings. How will it work out? Give it a try, tell me if it is any good, eheh READ&REVIEW, as usual, guys


A/N: First NCIS fic, please don't bite my head off if it's bad. Tony and Ziva, always.

Diclaimer: Own nothing but my words.

The bullpen had a cloud of silence soaring over it. In fact, it was so abnormally quiet that even Tony and McGee were focused on their work, and Ziva merely stared at the emptiness, not talking and breathing inaudibly. Gibbs stared at his team and heaved a sigh. They had been put through a lot more than anyone should even have to think about, and still they came to work every single day, not moaning, sighing, groaning, crying. They closed themselves, not allowing anyone to break through their shell and help them. And he would not have chosen them had they showed him they would proceed otherwise. No, their courage was what he most valued on their agents. But even he knew when things were wrong. They were very, incredibly wrong. And it was his fault. Everything was his fault. He stood up.

"Dinozzo, with me. Now."

Gibbs' harsh voice made him flinch almost imperceptibly in his chair and take his eyes off the reports he was trying to finish. "Yes, boss?"

"Were you not listening to me? Follow me." He commanded, and smiled in the inside as Tony obeyed without giving it a second thought. _I trained him well_.

McGee stared suspiciously at both of them. Gibbs fought the urge to laugh as he saw he had a somewhat pitiful expression on his face, as if he had foreseen a horrible destiny for his partner, but the urge was instantly replaced with sadness. Yes, there was no other word to call it. He always thought it was corny and cheesy to blame someone's mood on sadness. But the look on his female agent's face had no other word that would describe it as accurately as _sadness_. Perhaps _misery_. It all went down to the same: she was slowly breaking into pieces, and no-one was there to pick them up and put her back together.

"Boss?"

Tony's question broke his chain of thoughts. He realized he was in the elevator. "Yes, Dinozzo?" He shot back, irritated.

"Hum… didn't you want to talk to me in private?" Tony asked hesitantly.

Jethro stared at him for a few seconds, and then pressed the Stop button. "Yes, I did." He made himself comfortable by leaning against the wall. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

Tony seemed taken aback by the explosion, but the elder man was not so sure anymore. His agent's eyes had lost the teasing glint a long time before. "I… I was finishing the reports, just like you asked." He stuttered, unsure.

"No, Tony, what I meant was _why the bloody hell haven't you said a word to Ziva since her return_?" His voice was steady, as if he were describing a weather forecast.

Tony looked at his feet. "Oh, that. I have said a word. In fact, I've said many of them when McGee and I were in that miserable cell."

"Yes… Do you think that was enough? Seriously, Tony, I feel like I'm talking to a five year old child!" Gibbs yelled.

"I say hello every morning, in case you haven't noticed." Again, his voice was not as confident as he tried to make it sound.

"I notice everything, in case _you_ haven't noticed." He straightened up, and locked his eyes with Tony's. Gibbs remembered how small and useless it used to make him feel when his father stared at him that way, and was not surprised to see him recoil.

"I… I have, Boss."

"Then why are we even discussing it?"

It was then that Gibbs finally saw it. Tony's eyes burst in flames, his lips were pressed together with an unnecessary amount of strength. He punched the metal bar and screamed. "Argh! I don't know. Is that what you wanted to hear? I don't freaking know what else I should say to her!"

"Sit down." He ordered and did so himself. Once again, the young agent did not complain.

"What Ziva went through… it's so much more than we can possibly imagine. Multiply what you felt when you were captured by a million and you'll have an incredibly small idea of how much she suffered."

Tony did not say a word, his head on his hands. "I know." His muffled voice was barely hearable. _Is he crying? Good. It's about time_.

"We thought she was dead, you were told she was dead. But did you give up? Did you sit in your desk, searching for her replacement, and never thought about her again?" Gibbs' firm voice kept him focused.

"No, I didn't. I couldn't."

"That you didn't. You made the men who had done that to her pay, and you even got her back. What more could you possibly want?" He could not avoid it. His voice had a stern note to it, and he was silently begging Tony to pursue what he really wanted. _Who_ he really wanted.

Tony slowly lifted his head, his green eyes bright. "Are- Are you telling me to break rule twelve, Gibbs?" For a fraction of a second, his mouth twitched into a tiny smile.

The ex-marine inhaled heavily. "If that's what it takes to get my team back."

"Really?"

"Really, Tony, don't make me change my mind." Gibbs almost laughed when he got up as quickly as if he had been sitting on fire. Tony stretched out a hand, and Gibbs took it. He pressed the Stop button for the second time, and the door opened. "We didn't even leave our floor. Curious." He noticed Tony was hesitant in stepping outside the elevator. "You have thirty seconds to tell her everything. Or I'll assign her to work with someone who gets along with the ladies way better than you."

Tony's eyes twinkled. "That's impossible. I'm the boss."

"No, Dinozzo, I am. Now go." He slapped him on the head, and then patted him on the back.

Tony walked forward with a confidence he did not feel, strolling past all the desks that had little or no importance to him. He reached _the one_, and gazed at her, a smile on his face.

"Yes, Tony? Do you wish to talk to me, or are you going to continuously stare at me like I've outgrown my head?" Her sarcastic reply brought him a wave of self-assurance.

"It's _grown three heads_, David." He chuckled.

"Whatever. What is it?"

"Am I devastatingly handsome?" He asked coyly.

"Not really, no." Her mouth twitched into a teasing smile.

"Devastatingly amusing?" He raised an eyebrow. McGee miserably tried to cover a laugh with a sneeze. "Not you, McGee, we all know I'm your idol."

"Again, no, Tony." She shook her head, clearly amused. "It'd have been expected that you would know by now what I think of you. Do you want me to be constantly bringing your ego down?" Gibbs was watching the whole scene from McGee's desk, and was stunned at how natural they were. To think that a few minutes before, they had all been dangerously close to a depression…

"That's okay, I think I'll manage just fine without that." He grinned. "Just one more. Am I devastatingly sweet?"

"You wish, Dinozzo."

"Good." He pulled her from her chair, and she let out nothing more than a faint surprised cry. _She wants this as much as him. Were it anybody else, he would have already dropped dead_. "Because that old boyfriend of yours was none of those either. And you quite liked him. So, by association, you love me." Tony finished his speech and gently pulled her head close to his.

They kissed, Tony's hand brushing her cheek, and Gibbs turned his back to them, walking upstairs. Gibbs reached the balcony and yelled. "Rule 41: Hurt her, and I'll hurt you."

"Yes, boss."

"You said I liked him, not that I loved him. Therefore, I can only like you." Ziva's small voice made Tony smile. He put an arm around her waist.

"Hey, I'm a Dinozzo. You gotta give me some credit."

A/N: Loved it? Hated it? OOC (my worst fear EVER – if we leave the sharks out of this business :P)? READ AND REVIEW, PEOPLE :D


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